Hope and Despair
by PauPauSenpai
Summary: After a rough day, Lovino meets a woman who hands him two strange dolls, telling him that "Despair" is out to harm him and "his true love." Should he believe it? How can he protect himself and this love of his? (Human AU with made-up characters 'Hope' and 'Despair', Spamano, and hopefully other future ships as well!) (T for language)
1. Chapter 1: Antonio and Lovino Part 1

**Author's Note: Herro *u* I started off thinking of a concept for this story when I wanted to make a Spamano one-shot(Because you can neva have enough Spamano. ovo) But it looks like this will be a two-parter. xD**

**Furthermore, if anyone likes it, I can continue it like a collection of stories, as different ships with the same common theme. (This whole doll-red-string-of-fate-Hope-Despair-business) (I actually don't really dislike any ships so I'm pretty much okay with anything xD)**

**Please review/favorite if you like it! I'd really appreciate that. Even if you have difficulty expressing yourself in English. You should hear me speak Italian/German/Spanish. I totally empathize. 8'D Anyway, enjoyyyyy~!**

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><p>"Diez, nueve, ocho..."<p>

Antonio unwrapped his package of grapes. Lovino's scowl deepened. _This wine is too bitter._

"Siete, seis, cinco...get ready, Lovi!"

The Spaniard lined up the twelve grapes, and Lovino observed them with contempt. White and seedless. _The wine would be sweeter if the bastard used those kinds of grapes for it instead of whatever the hell he's doing now with them._

His eyes flicked back to the TV, where the countdown was commencing. The countdown to a New Year.

_Damn, last year's harvest was rough...I'm worried..._

"Cuatro, tres, dos...uno!"

There it was; officially January first. Suddenly, the TV started to chime. With each chime, Antonio downed a grape. Lovino looked at him quizzically.

"Is this a new diet fad people are doing this year?" he frowned at the grape-eating man, who finished the twelfth one on the final chime. Lovi was met with joyful emerald eyes, blinking at him innocently.

"What? It's just a tradition my people do on New Year's," Antonio shrugged casually, personally pleased he managed to swallow each grape in time for the chimes. "I ate the grapes fast enough, so I'll have a prosperous year! At least, that's how the tradition's supposed to go."

Not caring much for Spanish traditions, the Italian boy merely pouted in another direction. "Stupido. Eating grapes isn't going to sprout the tomatoes."

A rich chuckle floated through the air in response to this. Lovino felt a firm hand on his shoulder, and jumped in both surprise and embarrassment. He glared daggers at Toni, but nothing could break through his indestructible smile.

"Lighten up, Lovi! Aren't you wishing for a good year too? I know I am!"

"..." Trying to lessen the burning redness in his cheeks, Lovi ceased eye contact with the awfully-physical Spaniard, and instead let his gaze drift to the floor. In all honesty, he did hope for a prosperous year as well. But he wasn't going to admit he was wishing for that kind of thing, and he certainly wasn't going to start gulping down grapes for it.

"It's late, Lovi. Let's head to bed." Noticing the embarrassment in the boy's hazel eyes, Antonio let go and got up from his seat, switching the TV off. Lovino puffed his cheeks out and sighed sharply. It wasn't _that _late.

"Whatever."

* * *

><p>The next morning, an irritated Lovino woke to the sensation of careless sunlight seeping through the window blinds. But this sunlight felt strange to him- it felt...cold. He reluctantly opened his eyes as fuzzy laughter and sounds of excitement slowly drifted into his hearing. He groaned, recognizing the voice all too well, and remembering where he was.<p>

He threw off the covers and shuffled out to the living room area, where the laughter became clearer. He followed the noise towards the door to the backyard, where he finally saw what all the fuss was about.

"Lovi, hombre! Look at this!"

Antonio was rolling around in a thick blanket of snow. He threw it in the air and sank his bare skin in it, exposed by his pajama T-shirt. He hadn't even taken the time to put on a coat or gloves.

"Idiota." Lovino mumbled, and stared at the blindingly white landscape in dismay. It was still snowing, and quite heavily. There was no way the sliver of sunlight slipping through the clouds was going to affect this thick of a sheet at all.

_It looks like the winter might be extra long this year... That means it'll probably cut into tomato season. Dammit..._

"It's a miracle, amigo! Un milagro! This is going to be a marvelous year, I just know it!"

Lovino huffed at the overjoyed fool, but opted to make his way towards him anyway. He slipped on some shoes and headed out into the chilly Wonderland.

Unfortunately, this Wonderland was hiding some darkness- or, rather, some ice on the ground.

The Italian felt his control slip from under his feet as he immediately tumbled to the ice-covered concrete concealed in snow below him. He let out a startled yelp, which instantly perked Toni's ears, and he sat up from his place in the deceiving powder.

"Lovi?" he leapt up and practically flew to his disgruntled friend, reaching out a concerned hand. "Are you alright?"

His face was painted with worry, but as soon as Lovi saw this, he felt frustration and anger boil over inside him. How many times had he seen that face at the most unnecessary of moments? Too many times to count. Each annoying memory added fuel to his fuse, and he promptly smacked Toni's hand away from his face, much to the man's shock.

"Do you think I'm useless?!" he snapped, glaring up at the man indignantly with glistening eyes. "Why do you always act like I can't do anything myself?!"

Time seemed to stand still as a moment of pained and confused silence drifted through the air, before Lovino fiercely bit his lip and hurried away. He was still skidding on the ice as he fled.

"Lovino?" Antonio straightened up and called out to him, even more concerned than before. And suddenly, he was left alone in the pure white yard. "...?"

* * *

><p>Stupid. Stupid. Such things as playing in the snow were all just stupid. <em>Only an idiota like him would want to do something like that.<em>

"Ve~ Ve~!"

As Lovino walked down the snow-stained streets, a familiar voice neared him more and more. As he approached his house, it became evident it was none other than his brother, Feliciano, attempting to make snow angels in the middle of the road.

_...Well, I guess he's not the only idiota._

"Fratello, get up. You're gonna get run over." Lovi grumbled nonchalantly to his brother as he passed him to head into their house, as if such a scenario had occurred before.

"Ah-! Lovino? You're home! Ehh? You've been playing in the snow in your PJ's too?" Feli hopped up and followed his dearest brother into the house. Lovino merely grimaced and kicked off his shoes.

"No. Twerp."

The fact that Lovi wasn't rambling his mouth off about how annoying something was alarmed Feli. "Fratello, what's the matter? Ohh-! You haven't had breakfast yet, have you? I'll make it for you!"

The bubbly Italian jolted off to the kitchen, leaving his scowling brother in the entrance room. "I still have some pasta left, and all kinds of stuff!" his cheerful voice echoed through the halls.

Lovino let his eyes scan the decorated walls as he made his way to the kitchen. Every inch of every wall was adorned with some magnificent painting- all painted by his brother. His eyes narrowed, and then lowered, until finally he decided it was better for his spirits if he just stared at the floor instead.

As he approached the kitchen, he was met by the aroma of cooking pasta and chopped vegetables. Everything that was being prepared had the look and scent of simple deliciousness. As Feli cooked, he sang aloud to one of his favorite songs about the world coming together and holding hands in a big circle. Lovino couldn't help but notice his voice was light and sweet. Almost angelic. _Or is it past "almost?"..._

A short while later, the food was on the table. "Eat up, Lovino!" Feli smiled a child-like smile before digging in himself. Lovino took a bite- the Italian cuisine instantly melted in his mouth perfectly.

"..."

Perfectly.

"Feliciano."

"Sì-?"

"You painted all these paintings hung all over the walls, didn't you?"

"Sì-."

"And you cooked all this food in front of us, didn't you?"

"Fratello, you saw me cook i-"

"And you sang all those pretty songs that make people smile. ...Didn't you?"

"Loviiii, are you alright...?"

"..." The Southern Italian's gaze fell to his beautifully-filled plate of food for a minute more. Finally, he felt his lip quiver, and stopped fighting the urge to leave. He abruptly stood up from the table and took in a shallow breath.

"You can finish my plate, Feli. I need to run."

He briskly walked over to his shoes and jammed them on- this time making sure to grab a coat from the nearby coat rack- and vanished out the door, leaving behind his confused brother and perfectly good banquet.

* * *

><p>The snowfall had finally lightened by the time he reached the empty park.<p>

Lovino sensed the silent echoes of children's laughter ring throughout the vacant area, haunting it. Where had the children gone? Was it just too cold and too early to play here at this hour?

...For some reason, the emptiness saddened him. In such a place, the snow was not meant to be observed alone.

He breathed a frosty sigh, showing his displeasure to no one, and brushed the snow off of the seat of an inviting blue swing set. He sat down and rocked gently, tilting his head up to the cool grey sky.

_This sucks...without kids playing here, this whole place is useless._

He squinted at the stiff, silver clouds, crawling frigidly through the heavens above him.

_...It's fitting for me to be here, then._

Another worthless sigh. But this time, perhaps it wasn't so devoid of value.

"It feels lonely here, doesn't it?"

His drooping eyelids snapped open, and he jolted his head towards the unfamiliar voice. Someone was there with him?! But for how long? He hadn't heard any footsteps...!

But alas, a woman stood before him in the mesmerizing snow, somehow almost...shimmering, like the pale ground itself, basking in the narrow sunlight.

It was as if his eyes had to adjust to seeing an entity like her, very much like when the pupils adjust to the forgotten abnormality of darkness each night. Golden hair framed wise eyes and a soft smile, flowing down her shoulders and back in a comforting way, like resting wings. Her radiant skin appeared to not be affected by the harsh winter winds that occasionally assaulted the air.

"A place such as this shouldn't be empty, don't you think?" - Her voice was nothing but a constant wave of reassurance. She appeared out of place, but at the same time like a presence that was necessary to be there in order for the scene to be itself. She was like both the sun and the sun-tinted snow, coexisting in a single being. And yet...as a person...?

"Un angelo...?"

She giggled, filling up the previously-sad air with her cheerfulness. "Whatever you want to call me. I am Hope."

"Hope...?"

She approached the man, her smile turning empathetic. "You've been having a rough time recently, haven't you?"

He refused to reply, averting his eyes in needless denial. But she continued to walk towards him, shaking her head.

"It's not your fault. Despair is bullying you. He's a jerk, you see."

Lovino couldn't help but look back at the woman, 'Hope,' in puzzlement. Despair was...bullying him...?

She finally stopped walking, standing directly in front of him. Her crystal-like eyes darkened ever-so slightly.

"...He's planning on hurting you awfully. But I...won't let him. And you can do something about it."

His confusion didn't cease when she handed him the strange objects- two plain cloth dolls bundled up in a tangled mess of red string.

He hesitantly took hold of them and inspected them. He couldn't find the meaning in possessing them if he tried. "Lady, what is this...?"

"It's your contract to me. Pre-signed, of course." Her encouraging smile widened. "It represents you, and the one you truly love."

The sudden use of such words caused Lovi's face to blush pink, but she continued.

"You aren't really thinking about who on this Earth you truly love at this point in time, are you? That's alright. Whenever you're ready, right names on the dolls- your name on one, the name of who you decided is your true love on the other. And when you feel that Despair might be working his ways to tear you and that person apart, unravel the tangled-up red string. That will be a sign to me that your love is true, and I will make sure nothing harms it in any way I can. That's my promise with this contract."

"Erhm, lady..." All this 'love' talk seemed absurd to him, and he was starting to get frustrated by its unexpected existence as the topic at hand. But one thing stuck out to him especially bizarre.

"Contracts usually have a price in them, when they're something crazy like this," he spoke up at last, "I'm not too sure I can really confide in a 'contract' like this, but what is the price I'd have to pay for this kind of...protection, anyway?"

To this, the angelic blonde grinned playfully. "The price is...admitting you're in love!"

Lovino gawked at her, and was about to retort something back, but was interrupted by the calling of his name in the distance. He turned to look at where the voice was coming from, and doing so, he spotted a rapidly approaching Spaniard waving towards him in immense relief of having discovered his whereabouts.

"Ah, sorry lady, that's-" he turned back to speak with her once more, but was speechless to find that no one was standing around him at all.

"Lovino!" Antonio beamed through his out-of-breath panting, "I'm so glad I found you! I was looking everywhere for you..."

"Everywhere? For me?" Lovino was genuinely surprised. He had unconsciously expected Toni to remain rolling around in the snow, waiting for his little Italian to grudgingly stomp back to his home after getting too cold and lonely. He actually went out of his way to search for him...?

"Of course, mi amigo! It freaked me out for you to just run away like that. What do you think I would have done if you never came back?"

"..."

Finally catching his breath, Antonio placed both hands on his hips and looked out at the clear, sterling sky.

"Ahh, the sky looks so beautiful from here. You picked a nice spot to view it, Lovi."

Lovino raised his eyebrows contemptuously at the man's implications that he had purposely run away to this place to view the sky.

Toni's eyes shot down from the sky above him to the ground below him. "Ah, and the sun is shining perfectly on the snow as well! This is the best place, amigo, good job! May I have a seat here?"

He brushed off the snow of the swing set seat beside Lovi and sat down before he could be rejected, which only heightened Lovi's annoyance. The irritated boy let his hazel eyes lower to view the footprint-ridden snow in front of his feet.

"What are you even saying..." he muttered through a drawn-out sigh, "This place isn't the best, it's the worst. It was meant for children to play in it, to laugh and have fun in it, and it can't even accomplish that. Instead, it's drowning in icy snow, alone and devoid of kids. It's worthless here."

He kicked at the dirtied frost below him, rocking slightly in his swing. "This snow that's suffocating it is worthless too. At least it would be nice if kids were playing in it, but it's not being used by anyone. Just walked on, like any other kind of ground covering. It holds no value whatsoever. No value..."

His solemn words were allowed to echo through the crisp air without any response for a while- such a long while, that he looked over to Toni, somewhat nervously. Did he break him...? That would be bad...

Antonio blinked at him for a moment more, staring at him with a blank expression, before moving his body at last. He raised his hands up to either side of his face, and focused on the puzzled Lovino intently. Finally, he spoke:

"Fusosososososososososososososososososososo~!"

_That weird noise again... _Lovi couldn't help but break into a still-slightly-confused smirk and small laugh. "What the hell are you doing, ya bastard?"

At that signal, the 'bastard' stopped and grinned softly at him. "See, now this place is not worthless."

Lovino's eyes widened, and he stared at Antonio with a mixture of shock and confusion. _What...?_

Antonio's smile seemed to melt into a somewhat melancholy expression as he left Lovi's gaze to scan the rest of the park attentively.

"This place was made for people to smile in, and enjoy themselves in. So long as we are doing that, this place is not worthless."

His companion gaped at him, though he wasn't able to pinpoint what exactly had surprised him. The Spaniard went on, his jade-like eyes falling to the snow, in the exact same footprint-trodden place Lovino was just viewing.

"This snow...so long as the both of us are here, this snow is not worthless either."

His eyes slowly rose to look across the magnificent expanse ahead of them. Lovino did the same.

"The snow's not meant to be observed alone, after all."

He turned to beam at his dearest friend. Lovino froze, unable to imagine anything worth uttering at this point in time. His eyes slowly met Antonio's, but he wasn't processing what he was looking at anymore. He was simply feeling for Toni's hushed voice. _Antonio...?_

"That's why I'm here."

_..._

And the two just let those words settle in the chilled winter air for a while longer, watching the sky and snow, and applying worth to everything their vision touched.

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><p><strong>Author's note: Welp, that looked like a good place to end the first chapter. xD The next part will be pretty intense...if I portray it correctly. *u*<strong>

**Remember to review and all that if you liked it. Really motivates me. xD**

**Thanks so much for reading!**


	2. Chapter 2: Antonio and Lovino Part 2

**Author's note: Ohai. I don't know how to make things short and sweet. So I know I was originally going to make this a one-shot, and then said it will be a two-parter instead...**

**Nope. It's going to be a three-parter. xD**

**Probably no more than that though. At least as far as the Spamano story goes. Again, if people want me to write similar stories involving these dolls and whatnot with other ships, lemme know. .w./**

**So here's the second part. Enjoy!**

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><p>After spending that time observing the snow sprinkle from the silver sky, the pair finally returned home. The air around them was already darkening, illuminating the pale white ground in the milky moonlight. Antonio was especially conscious of the dark walking home- Lovino was conscious of the close, protective proximity Toni walked beside him in.<p>

Eventually they made it to his abode though, and finally tucked themselves into bed. Antonio actually fell asleep faster than Lovi for once- the Italian's mind was racing too fast with confused thoughts about today's events. He held the two bundled-up dolls in his hand, inspecting their simple fabric in the moonlight falling through the blinds. There was nothing particularly special about them, except for the red strings. He sighed and closed his eyes, attempting to venture to dreamworld, hopefully one filled with tomatoes. ...

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><p>Any tomato-full dreams of his were rudely interrupted, though, by the shrieking of the bitter winds outside.<p>

They lashed at the window menacingly, and Lovino's eyes almost immediately flew open. He sat up hurriedly, Toni following suit, blinking at him with a mix of puzzlement and grogginess.

"The wind's loud," Lovi tried to squeak out, but the gusts of air snapped back at him, as if retorting angrily. He clamped his mouth shut, clenching his teeth and hands. He never realized how close he slept to the window...

Antonio crawled over him to open up the blinds and peer out at what he hoped would just be a windy, white landscape. But it was just as he feared- snow was mixing with the frenzied air, morphing into a blizzard so dense and violent that he couldn't even see a meter out his window. _Yikes..._

His eyes flicked to the alarm clock as he prayed that it was still night and they could try to get back to bed and sleep through it to awake to a peaceful morning. Much to his surprise- and dismay- however, the alarm clock read nothing. It was dead and dark.

Filling with dread, he attempted to switch on a nearby lamp. Nothing. They had lost power.

"Maldita sea...!" he cursed under his breath in his native tongue, which caused Lovino to realize what had happened. The storm screamed at them once more, and Antonio couldn't help but notice his companion jump at the sudden noise. Furthermore, the heat in the house had vanished with the electricity. Lovino was visibly shivering, curling up tighter in his wad of blankets.

_Dammit, dammit, dammit all to hell! _the Italian growled in his head, _there's nothing to get so jumpy over! It's just wind! Stupid wind! Stupid, stupid-_

_SHRIIIIIIIEK-_

_!_

He finally opted to squeeze his eyes shut, trying his absolute hardest to envision that nothing but the most beautiful tomatoes existed outside that window. Antonio noticed this. He could even tell what Lovi was trying to imagine- there was something about his expression that read, 'tomatoes.' And also the fact that he was singing "Buono tomato, buono tomato, buono buono oo tomato..." quietly under his breath.

The Spaniard paused while looking at his friend for a moment, before rising and turning to face the bedroom door. Lovi could feel his presence depart from him, and opened his eyes to look up at him curiously. He received a gentle smile in return.

"Come on. I'm going to light the fireplace."

. . .

Lovino laid his blankets down on the floor in front of the fireplace to sit in, having been wincing from the freezing touch of the floor tiles beneath his feet. The crimson flames Antonio had lit swirled and flickered comfortingly. Lovi's heartbeat was finally settling.

Toni had left to the kitchen for a minute, and returned with two mugs. He was met with bright, quizzical eyes, blinking at him with inquiry.

"Good ol' fire-heated hot cocoa, amigo." He replied to those eyes with a cheery grin. Lovino pouted, but only for the sake of not revealing he was pretty pleased with this idea.

. . .

"Looks like we won't be venturing outside for a while," Antonio remarked as he sipped his cocoa, peering at the endless flurries outside his living room window. Lovino scoffed.

"Whatever. I wasn't planning on doing much anyway. I just hope my stupid brother doesn't decide to play in the snow today, and get hit by incoming debris or something." He closed his eyes and gulped at his cocoa in a haughty fashion, causing Toni to chuckle adoringly. Lovino felt his laughter and opened one eye to glower at him in a slightly confused fashion.

"What are you laughing at, ya Spanish bastard?" He was about to spout some more insults, but there was something in Antonio's smile that caught him off guard. What was it...? Was it softer than usual, perhaps...? Or maybe something else...

"...?" _Why is he looking at me like that..._

The smile lasted a peculiar amount of time to him.

"If you drink it down too fast, I'll have less time to enjoy drinking cocoa with you."

Toni beamed playfully. Lovino huffed and looked away to futilely hide the growing scarlet-hued blush burning his face.

"I-Idiota..."

. . .

The day pressed on, as did the storm. It didn't even seem to wane, unlike the dying flames clinging to life within the fireplace- the blizzard seemed to just be in a constant state of viciousness, howling ominously in the background at any given time.

"I'll probably need to restart the fire soon," Antonio noted, examining the remnants of the blaze with calm eyes. Lovino silently agreed, unable to formulate words through his chattering teeth and dreary state. It wasn't too bad, though. Next to Toni, somehow, he felt warmer. He inched the smallest fraction closer to him, praying that it would go unnoticed.

_But why can't this stupid storm just go away?_

The howling outside rose in volume, as if to say, "I heard that." It chilled Lovino's very being. He felt a shudder run up his spine and shut his eyes, bringing his knees closer to his chest and tugging the blanket closer to his chin. He was scared of the snowstorm, on an unconscious level. It was Mother Nature waking up on the wrong side of the bed. It could harm him and his friends, his family, everyone he cared about, and he could not do a thing to stand up against something so much greater than a single person. He was powerless against it.

_As usual..._

He bit his lip and began to tremble, but this only frustrated him more. He was so weak, he couldn't even control his bodily reactions to what he feared. At least feigning strength would have made him a bit less pitiful.

And worst of all, Antonio took notice. He felt the man's shining green eyes peer at his cowardly figure, huddled helplessly in a heap of blankets. What was he going to say? A million of annoying ideas raced through Lovino's mind.

_"You're scared of the storm, aren't you? Jajaja!"_

_"Whatcha shivering for, amigo? Need another blanket?"_

_"There's nothing to be scared of, you silly tomato! It's just a storm!"_

Annoying. Annoying. Annoying. Lovino squeezed his eyes tighter closed and braced himself for whatever stupid comment would come out of the bastard's mouth.

He was shocked, to say the least, when he received no words at all.

Instead, a single gesture- assuaging arms gathering him up in their warmth. He breathed in sharply, feeling his heart refuse to function for an endless instant.

Antonio embraced him, resting his chin on Lovi's head, and Lovi's forehead against his collar bone. The two were wrapped up together in all of the blankets. They remained like that for a while, until Lovino's startled breaths finally slowed in sync with Antonio's steady ones.

"S-Stupido, I-I'm not scared!" the befuddled Italian hissed without moving, "I'm just colder than hell, b-because some bastard decided to not relight the fireplace yet!"

The uncertainty in his shaky voice was evident, and he cursed himself silently. The smallest of smiles graced Antonio's lips from this, but the emotion within it wasn't quite describable.

"I know. I know."

He murmured into the deep brown hair, before kissing tenderly the head he cradled against him.

...

Lovino's heartbeat halted, and then skyrocketed, along with the jumbled up garble flooding his restless mind. But he did not move, and he did not speak.

Because when Antonio did this, his statement became true. He was not scared anymore.

. . .

Eventually, the storm calmed. The constant assault of icicle-spears in the wind decreased to a drizzling of fluffy snowflakes dancing in the breeze.

Lovino felt gradually heavier in Antonio's arms as night rolled in. He felt his eyelids try to fall, but he resisted again and again.

"The fire's practically dead, idiota," he finally mumbled, "Relight it already."

Toni laughed lightly and ruffled his hair a bit before letting go. "Fine, fine, whatever you say, hombre."

He got up and began assembling the utilities to spark a flame in the fireplace again. Lovino watched him for a moment before sighing to himself.

_Maybe it isn't so bad to be cared for..._

He looked down at the two strange dolls he had kept hidden underneath his share of the blankets.

Does it mean that he is useless, to be cared for?

_I don't think so..._

He glanced up again at the Spanish man messing with the burnt wood in front of them.

...

Quietly, he let his hand search for a nearby pen, and began writing their names on the white fabric of the dolls.

Not quiet enough, it seems, though- right as he finished writing the names, Toni turned around and blinked at him with curiosity.

"What's that?" He approached to inspect the strange items, but this only caused Lovino to back away slightly and shove the dolls behind his back.

"Nothing, bastardo," he responded harshly as per usual, but his normal pout dissolved into a look of perplexity at the Spaniard's mischievous smirk. _What's he thinking now...?_

Suddenly, Antonio brought his face perilously close to Lovi's. The bewildered Italian backed up more and squeaked as he realized he was pinned against a wall. Toni leaned in close to him, raising his arms up to either side and placing his hands firmly on the wall, to prevent escape.

"T-Toni, what are y-?!"

"Tell me, Lovino." He lifted a hand to point towards the mysterious objects Lovi was hiding. "What is it? Hm?"

Lovi's eyes widened in both shock and fear. Antonio was so close, he could feel the heat of his breaths caress his shivering lips. If he got any closer...

But he was getting closer, every moment. And every moment he grew nearer, Lovino's heart seemed to wheeze painfully, struggling more and more to beat properly. He slid down the wall slightly, gritting his teeth, as Toni placed a warm hand on his cheek.

"You never tell me anything, you know." His eyes, painted with alarming solemnity, narrowed as he placed his thumb on Lovi's chin and lifted it. "Why is that, hm? Why is that, Lovino?"

Lovino felt like he was melting into lava- so much so, that a brief moment passed in his incoherent stream of thoughts, in which he hoped Toni would let go, or else he'd singe his hands.

...And, at their current proximity, his lips.

This single thought terrified Lovino even more than any snowstorm ever could. He choked out a sob, apprising Antonio that something was wrong, who lifted his face away from Lovi's to find out what the problem was.

At this moment, Lovi found the opportunity to flee, which was all he was thinking of doing now. He shoved Antonio away from him with shaky hands and bolted out the door with nothing but a blanket and the mysterious dolls.

"Lovi?!" Antonio immediately got up and tried to follow him out the door, but he had sprinted headfirst into the darkness of the night, out of view by the time Toni reached the entrance way. He called out Lovino's name once more before growling in frustration and planting a fist on the door. Who knew of the dangers that could exist out there, cloaked in the heavy dark of midnight and obscured by the heavy light of snowfall?

The distraught Spaniard began searching haphazardly for a flashlight, ending up with nothing but fruitless efforts. As he stumbled through his dark house, a few lights suddenly came to life, along with the humming of ventilation and a few household appliances. His eyes lit up with them- electricity was back!

Locating the remote, he switched on the television before returning to his hunt for a torch. He wanted to watch the news for any info on what Lovi could possibly be getting into out there. But this only threw him into even more of a panic- it seemed like everything being reported was nothing but disaster, crime, and warnings to stay inside. Finally, he gave up on the flashlight and headed to the front door, throwing on shoes and a coat. He had to find Lovino.

The TV chimed on behind him: _. . . A group of armed individuals on the loose, who have already shot and killed a sixteen-year-old. . ._

...

Perhaps it would be best if he brought...that item as well.

...

He left the house, clutching tightly to a certain concealed object, moving fast through the thick snow and frigid air.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's note: Oooo, mystery. *u* Yeah, this is why I needed to break it into three parts. There's still quite a bit to go that I don't want to jam into one chapter.<strong>

**Please remember to write a review to let me know if you liked it! I would gladly appreciate it! Gracías y grazie mille! 8D**


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